


Nurture Wins Against Nature

by SykoShadowRose



Category: RWBY
Genre: Canon Divergence, Clover Ebi Lives, Gen, M/M, Male Lactation, Mama!Qrow, Marrow Is A Good Boy, Multi, Qrow Doesn’t Drink As Much, Qrow Is The Best Uncle, Qrow’s Not Sure What To Do With That, Raven Is A Terrible Mother, Summer Dies But They Handle It Better, Summer Has A Kink About Qrow Lactating
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-02
Updated: 2020-04-02
Packaged: 2021-02-28 19:13:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,656
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23442244
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SykoShadowRose/pseuds/SykoShadowRose
Summary: It all starts with one sentence that Taiyang never saw coming from Qrow."I'm breastfeeding your daughter."Everything just kind of builds from there and years later, with a wounded Atlas soldier in his bed, he still okay with it.
Relationships: Hinted Future Qrow Branwen/Clover Ebi/Taiyang Xiao Long, Past Summer Rose/Raven Branwen/Taiyang Xiao Long, Qrow Branwen/Taiyang Xiao Long, Summer Rose/Qrow Branwen/Taiyang Xiao Long
Comments: 4
Kudos: 75





	Nurture Wins Against Nature

**Author's Note:**

> This whole idea came from Qrow being the one to nurse Yang instead of Raven. I know. I've got a really weird brain.

“Wait, she was pregnant when she left?”

Qrow lightly bounced the small blond infant on his hip while meeting Summer’s silver eyes. Behind her Taiyang had collapsed to the floor, blue eyes locked on the small girl. At least he was finally able to explain why he’d been gone for over a year without warning.

“Yes. She came to me and demanded I help her. She originally wanted me to help terminate the pregnancy because she said she didn’t want any brats but I refused and talked her out of it. After the birth she wanted us to take the baby and go back to the tribe. I wanted to bring the baby back here. We’ve been at a stand still ever since. She’s been hovering to make sure I didn’t take Yang and make a run for it but a week ago Raven left and hasn’t come back. I think she finally went back to the tribe without us.”

“Yang?” His male teammate’s voice was small, lost. It was heart wrenching to hear.

“Yang Xiao Long. I figured if Raven was going to keep her from you then she needed something of you to know you by.” He still felt guilty that he hadn’t been able to get his twin back to Patch so that Tai and Summer could be there for the pregnancy and birth, let alone for all the things that followed after. First smile, first laugh. He’d done his best to record when everything had happened in a notebook but it wasn’t the same, he knew.

“How old is she?” Tai stood up and stepped closer, offering a smile to the infant. She stared up at him with wide lilac eyes and curled closer to Qrow’s shoulder. Nervous but not afraid of him. He wanted to hold her but waited for her to be comfortable. Qrow would hand her to him when she was ready.

“She’s five months old now, soon to be six.” He glanced down at her and ran a reassuring hand down her back. Shifting his hip a little closer to the brawler so she could get used to the large man. He’d never wanted to keep her from her father for exactly this reason. Damn Raven.

Summer frowned in concentration, studying the small body from a short distance away. It would do no good to overwhelm the infant. “She looks really healthy. What kind of formula are you using?”

Qrow’s face flamed, and he ducked his head to hide it in Yang’s blond waves. Young as she was, her hair was growing quickly and thickly. It was going to be an untamed mess just like Raven’s- he just knew it. 

“Qrow?” Both their voices blended together in concern and confusion.

He cleared his throat, averting his vermillion gaze to a nearby window, shifted the tiny weight to his other hip. Opened his mouth and closed it again. Cleared his throat a second time. “Well… Raven didn’t want anything to do with her before the birth, so I figured she wasn’t going to take proper care of her and so that meant I was going to have to do it because she was still refusing to come here and that meant doing research and looking into things I wasn’t entirely sure about but had heard of and doing things I wasn’t entirely sure about either and it actually worked which I hadn’t really thought it would but I had to try for her sake and-”

“Qrow! Breathe!” Tai gripped the tense shoulder, startling Qrow into looking up at him. Eyes wider than he’d ever seen them and a blush so strong his face rivaled his cape.

“Whatever it is, just spit it out.” Summer frowned, worried about their friend. In all the years she’d known him, he’d _never_ rambled like that before. It was more than a little concerning but she couldn’t do anything to help until she knew what was going on.

“I’m breastfeeding your daughter.” Two pairs of eyes blinked at him. His blush was going absolutely _nowhere_ any time soon. “I looked it up while Raven was still pregnant. Male lactation is an actual thing and since she wasn’t going to do it… Well, breast milk is supposed to be best so… I figured I’d do it? I wanted what was best for her and I didn’t know how long it would take before I could get her to you. And we weren’t exactly in a place within easy reach of a store so it wasn’t like I could buy supplies for her.”

“That’s… _amazing_ Qrow.” Summer breathed from where she stood, silver eyes flicking down and locking on his chest with an intensity that made him want to put on three more shirts. And a jacket. 

Tai looked like his brain had been broken. Qrow didn’t blame him.

The only reason he’d even thought it was possible was because there had been a shopkeeper back at Vale who’d mentioned nursing his son after his wife died in childbirth while they’d been students at Beacon. At the time he’d thought maybe the man was a transgender but he had been desperate enough to look it up as soon as he’d realized Raven wasn’t going to take proper care of her child once it was born. As it turned out he’d been a pretty good candidate for possible spontaneous male lactation, so getting his body to do it on purpose hadn’t been hard. It had been awkward though. Still was. 

“It’s not… It’s just… a… thing…” Qrow shifted uncomfortably, resisting the urge to use little Yang as a shield for his chest. “She needed to eat somehow.” 

“Qrow.” He barely held back a jump and a solid hand rested on his shoulder. Looking up into blue eyes, he could find no judgement- only gratitude. _“Thank you.”_

Qrow ducked his head shyly and nodded. This was going much better than he’d feared it would. Pressing a small kiss to the girl’s temple he shited her around so that Tai could take her into his arms. The ebony hunter kept one hand on her so that she would know he was still there for her. As Tai started talking softly to his daughter, Qrow couldn’t help but smile. Yang was already warming up to the friendly blond, tiny hands reaching for his face and grabbing at his hair. Entranced by the fact that it was the same color as her own. Summer stayed back for the moment, allowing the two to get to know each other and start bonding and trying to keep her gaze from straying to Qrow’s chest anymore than it already did. 

~

Tai leaned on the door frame, watching curiously as Qrow fed Yang and quietly sang to her. He didn’t understand the language but he recognized it as one the twins used to talk to each other in. It was a bit weird to witness, but only because it was so ingrained that breastfeeding was a woman’s job and Qrow was very much not a woman. Still, it got a little less weird to see each time and was actually becoming quite beautiful. Qrow was completely at ease as he held his niece and Yang was perfectly content. Tai had taken to watching fairly often (Summer had too) and even if Qrow was self-conscious about it, he’d never kicked either of them out while he was nursing. 

Tai had needed to pull Summer back a bit though. She was bizarrely (intensely) fascinated with the whole thing and he wondered if he should be concerned. He wasn’t sure what to make of it. She’d never acted that way with any of their other friends who’d nursed their children, so it had to be something specifically about Qrow. Maybe because he was male? It might be weird for him (at the moment) but it could be appealing to her. As a woman, finding out a man could nurse too might be freeing, indicating that she wouldn’t have to be the only one nursing any child she bore. Or Tai could be reading into it too much. He wasn’t sure actually. He was still adjusting fully to the idea that he was a dad.

He couldn’t believe Raven had run off like that while she was _pregnant with his child_ and had abducted Qrow to help her. The relief he felt, knowing Qrow had saved Yang’s life, had named her _after him_ was overwhelming. Then going so far as to breastfeed her. Tai couldn’t express how grateful he was that his friend was doing this for them. Changing the foundation of his own body to provide for the infant…

The blond hadn’t ever thought of such a thing, wouldn’t have thought of it either. Wasn’t sure he could do that himself. He probably would have just bottle fed her with whatever formula the doctor told him was best for his daughter. For now, he was content to learn what songs she liked, what her favorite toys were. He would bathe and change her and get closer to his daughter. 

And if his friend needed anything, _anything_ Taiyang could give him- he would give it. It was all he could do to pay him back for all that he had done.

~

Qrow gasped and writhed as teeth bit down on an overly sensitive nipple while he was propped up on several pillows in his bed. He didn’t know why he’d thought this would be a good idea. When he’d done it for Yang it had been a necessity, this was not. Though he did agree with Summer that it would be a good idea for two of them to be able to nurse the newborn baby once she gave birth. That didn’t mean it wasn’t an awkward process. But since he’d just started weaning Yang (she had turned a year old not long ago), they needed to do something to ensure he could still help after the birth in several months time. 

Which is how he found himself on his back with Summer over him, suckling none-too gently at his aching chest. 

He wondered, as she bit down again, this time on the other nipple, if perhaps he should have had Taiyang help him with this instead, despite it being the huntress’ idea. Summer had been hyper focused on his chest since he’d blurted out that he was breastfeeding. He should have realized that something like this would have happened when she’d suggested “helping” him stay in his current “condition” so that he could help nurture the coming child. (They weren’t sure if it was a boy or a girl yet. Gender would be looked at at the next doctor’s visit. Qrow was almost as anxious for an answer as the parents.) She bit down again and sucked hard, causing him to jump and whine. He really needed to enlist Tai’s help with this, surely the blond would be less rough. And if not then there must be ways for him to do this himself. 

He squirmed away when the woman finally let up on her assault, resisting the urge to cover himself. He was not a wilting flower and he wasn’t about to act like one. No matter how vulnerable he felt. She grinned at him a bit apologetically. “Sorry, couldn’t help myself.” Summer scooted closer to him, leaning against his shoulder while he sat back against the headboard. 

He gave her a flat look, tugging his shirt closed to re-button it. “What exactly is it with you and _this_ ,” he waved a hand at himself, “anyways? You’ve been like this since I first mentioned it.”

“I dunno. I just…” She blushed and averted her silver eyes, but ended up looking back at him, unable to keep herself from looking at him (and his chest) for very long. “There’s just something about it that gets to me. I don’t know how to explain it really.” She ducked her head. “Does it bother you?”

Qrow rolled his shoulders, thinking it over. “Not… exactly. I don’t get it but I’m not going to judge you for it. Just… be a little more gentle? I don’t mind you helping but… You don’t understand yet but they are really sensitive. You’ll get it in a few months when you start too.”

“Sorry. I didn’t realize I was being so rough.” She pressed a kiss to his neck and settled into his side, ignoring the blush she’d summoned to his cheeks. “I’ll try to be more gentle with you in the future. And I’ll make sure Tai knows too. Though I don’t think he’ll go wild like I did.”

“Yea, he’s not weirded out by it but he’s not as… intense about it as you are.” Qrow gave a small smile, already amused at the very thought of that coming conversation.

~

Tai was indeed more gentle with Qrow than his wife was. And as she had a tendency to get wild with him, it was agreed that Tai would be there to help keep her under control. Since they still had to take care of Yang, their “sessions'' were usually held after the tyke was put to bed. Qrow hadn’t really realized it (or what it meant) when they’d moved things to Summer and Taiyang’s room for “convenience sake”. Or that they tended to hold him between them when things were over so he ended up staying the night with them in their bed instead of retreating back to his own room. He hadn’t realized that when they said “our kids'' they were including him as a parent and not as an uncle.

He did notice when Yang first called him Mama. That was kind of hard to miss.

She naturally called Tai Dad, and Summer was Mom. The first time she’d said Mama he’d thought maybe she had changed what she used to call Summer. Except two things didn’t work with that theory: One, he was the only one in the room. And two, she was reaching for him while saying it. He was flummoxed. Still, he scooped the child up from her crib and took her downstairs for her after-nap snack. Summer was making cookies in the kitchen and Tai looked like he was brewing tea for later. 

“She called me Mama…” He announced to no one in particular. Tai turned to look at him, obviously confused. Summer’s shoulders hitched up while she ducked her head. “Summer Ambrosia Rose…” The ebony hunter growled lowly. The blond turned to look at her as well.

Still shrinking in on herself the huntress turned to face him. “Well… It made sense you know? Moms care for and nurture and _feed_ and that’s what you’ve been doing from the start. So, since she calls me Mom I thought she could call you Mama…”

Blue eyes flicked from glowering garnet to sheepish silver, trying to figure out what he should do. He understood Summer’s perspective (agreed with it even, to an extent) but he could also understand Qrow’s. So he needed to find that middle ground between them. “I don’t think it’s a bad thing but… Maybe, should have asked him about it first, sweetheart.” 

“Would have been nice.” The scythe wielder drawled dryly.

The woman shrugged. “I’d say sorry but…”

The Branwen sighed, shifting Yang to the other hip and shaking his head at her. “You’re not sorry in the slightest. Yea, we get it.” He went to the counter and snatched up a cookie for the tiny blond, giving the silver huntress an unimpressed look as he turned to leave the kitchen.

~

Qrow held little Ruby to him, nursing the newborn while her mother slept off the strain of labor. The doctors and nurses had been a bit confused when Tai had refused the bottle they’d offered him and handed off the infant to Qrow while taking Yang into his own arms. While it was medically possible for a male to nurse (and several of them knew it) it was _highly_ uncommon. Especially since the nursing male wasn’t even the father. Still, it wasn’t their place to judge as long as the infant was being cared for, so they said nothing and continued with their work.

“What do you think the chances of her teaching Ruby to call me Mama are as well?” Qrow murmured, adjusting his hold to be more secure.

Tai glanced at his wife, shifting his slumbering daughter to his other shoulder. “Pretty much guaranteed unless we both seriously demand she stop. If it bothers you enough to make a big fuss about it we could pull it off. Guilt her into stopping.”

There was silence from the other, and briefly he worried that it actually did bother Qrow much more than he’d let on. “No. It’s not that big of an issue. It makes her happy and there’s no harm done so let her have her fun.”

“If you’re sure.”

“It’s weird to me- like me breastfeeding was to you. But it’s not a problem. Not in the way you’re thinking anyways.”

“What do you mean?”

“They’re gonna grow up and go to school and make friends. And as long as they call me Mama all of those people are going to ask questions they won’t know how to deal with or answer. Uncle wouldn’t bring any unusual attention. I may not be blood to Ruby but she looks like Summer and the two of us have enough similarities that everyone thinks we might be related anyways. And since they’re sisters no one will doubt Yang either. So, no questions.”

Tai frowned as he considered all that Qrow meant. Nontraditional relationships were becoming more accepted but there were still places that kept to more traditional standards. Qrow was worried about the girls being singled out, isolated and bullied or teased, because of the three of them. It was, unfortunately, a legitimate concern. One he’d have to bring up to Summer so that the three of them could talk about how they wanted to handle this potential problem.

~

“Are you absolutely certain you have to do this?”

“Yes. I have to do it. And I want you to know the full extent of what this mission is and what it means but I can’t. I can only tell you that this is the most dangerous mission I have ever been on and I may not come back to you.” Summer held tight to her husband, trying to press into him the importance of what she was doing and why she had to go even knowing she wouldn’t come home. “I love you and Qrow and our daughters. That’s why I have to do this. I promise to try my hardest to return but you need to be ready just in case… I said goodbye to Qrow and the girls earlier so I’ll be leaving after this.” She drew a shuddering breath, felt his arms tighten around her. “Don’t tell Qrow right away. He may try to follow me and I can’t have both of us taking this risk. I have a letter for him telling him why I made this choice.”

“Okay. He’s going to be pissed as hell but I’ll wait.” Tai let her go, giving her one last kiss before she left for this oh, so important mission. He prayed to the absent Brothers that she would come home safely but he knew deep down that it was likely this was the last time he’d see her and he had to be ready for that, had to make sure Qrow and their daughters were ready for it. It was a daunting (horrible) task that loomed over his head but he was grateful to have the forewarning. This way he would be able to help his family through the grief if the worst came to pass.

~

Qrow had been upset when Tai finally gave him the letter but he’d been understanding as well. Whatever Summer had written had done the trick, making it much easier for Taiyang to convince him to stay with him and the girls. The scythe wielder had continued to live in the cabin with them, teaching at Signal when he wasn’t taking missions (and later training Ruby) or off completing whatever task Qzpin needed done. They had eventually decided to teach the girls to call Qrow by Uncle, if only to make their lives easier. Tai still considered Qrow as much a parent to them as himself. He didn’t like that the smaller male had picked up drinking at some point while out on a mission but he could understand why. And Qrow kept it away from the house, so he didn’t have much to really complain about. Life moved on and the two stayed close, watching over their daughters and doing what they could to take care of them and each other. 

As the girls got older, Qrow started spending more time away on missions and tasks, though he was always quick to return when they were completed. Tai was always ready to welcome him back, pretending to ignore the way the ebony hunter was drawn and pale. Pretending he didn’t notice the way the small man pressed into his touches. He simply pulled the other man close, making sure he ate and holding him until he fell asleep. It was a comfortable routine they fell into until Qrow came back from Beacon with an unconscious Ruby and a despondent Yang missing an arm.

It was hell, being unable to really help his girls. Ruby needed to recover from using her eyes so powerfully and only time could do that. There was nothing he could do for Yang though. What happened to her depended almost solely on her own actions. He could be there for her though, encourage and support her. But ultimately her recovery would be on her own terms regardless of what he did. When Ruby finally woke and recovered enough to start traveling again he was terrified.

She was so much like her mother, standing in the living room explaining what she felt she had to do and why. Asking for him to be okay with her decision despite the danger. He took some comfort in the fact that she was going to seek out her friends to travel with her to Haven. And she hadn’t mentioned Qrow, meaning the man was likely going to be hovering over them protectively from a distance. He could live with that. He trusted his lover to look over her and her friends. He would stay home and take care of her sister. So he hugged his youngest and helped her pack everything she needed. He wished her the best and accepted the letter she wrote for her sister (ignored the pang of remembering a similar letter years ago) and saw her off to find her friends with promises that he would wait home until he received some letter or message from her that she needed him.

Once she was out of sight, he turned to see a crow perched nearby. Stepped out of sight of any witnesses so that he could say goodbye to his longtime lover. Swore that unless something extreme happened he’d hold the home fort for them to have a safe place to return to, even if it hurt him to be left behind. And once the little black bird had flown out of sight after their youngest daughter he returned home to his eldest, setting the letter down where she was bound to find it on her own eventually.

~

Tai checked the bandages around the brunette’s chest. Clover had been extremely lucky (more than even his semblance could account for) that the blade of Harbinger had managed to pierce him in a location where only the removal of it would be life threatening and that Qrow had reacted fast enough to stop the deranged maniac from pulling the weapon out of his body. Sure it may not have been the most comfortable feeling in the world to have a sword stuck through you but at least he’d been alive for them to escape Solitas and make it to Patch where he was able to get proper medical treatment. 

The details of what had happened where jumbled when he’d asked but he gathered that the girl, Penny, with the boy, Oscar, had somehow used Ruby and the old woman, Maria, and the power of their silver eyes (Maria might be missing her’s but the power was genetic meaning it was still insider her even if she’d lost her focus for it) to repel a Grimm siege and get everyone away from a James that had (apparently) lost his mind. His daughters had only managed to escape unscathed because the dog faunus, Marrow, had used his semblance on his own team so they could be restrained. They were on their way to Vaccuo but needed time to rest and recover. And since Patch was between Atlas and Vaccuo they decided to stop and update him. 

He was grateful for it. It’d been hard not knowing what was going on.

Qrow had assured him that the scorpion faunus that had attacked Ruby, poisoned him, and nearly killed Clover was taken care of and no longer a threat. He knew enough about what Qrow was capable of to read between the lines on that one. What he wasn’t sure about was just what Clover was to Qrow. The ebony fighter seemed drawn to the wounded brunette as much as he tried to stay away. He trusted his lover but it was obvious that there was something there. He wouldn’t jump to conclusions though. He’d wait a few days and talk to Qrow, get the full story from him. If it was what he thought then he’d take the time they were here recovering getting to know Clover. He’d been in two poly relationships in the past, he had nothing against another one as long as they could all agree and get along. (He doubted he wouldn’t get along with anyone Qrow fell for.)

For now he’d tend to the wounded and wait while everyone slept off their exhaustion. He’d enjoy the feeling of having his family safe with him for however brief it may be. Once Clover’s wound was rewrapped he’d go and check on everyone. He’d make sure Pietro and Maria had what they needed in the guest room, raise his eyebrows at Penny, Weiss and Ruby squeezing together on a bed (despite the fact that the mechanical huntress didn’t actually need sleep, at least she was plugged in) in her room, shake his head at Yang and Blake wrapped together in the blond’s room. Downstairs he’d smile at Zwei curled up on Marrow’s back on the couch, throw a blanket over Oscar, sleeping in a chair, and step around Nora sprawled over Ren on the floor to nudge Jaune into a more comfortable position in the other chair. He’d go to the back door and walk out to find Qrow staring up at the shattered moon and drag him back inside to rest next to Clover in their bed. And in the morning he would wake up and make breakfast for everyone. 

Teal eyes opened half-way as he tied off the wrapping. Tai smiled down at the fevered man. “My name is Taiyang. You’re safe for now, eveythings going to be fine, just go back to sleep okay.” He soothed, resting a hand on his shoulder. Those eyes regarded him for several seconds before he gave the tiniest of nods and closed them again, letting sleep take him properly so he could recover. Something about the handsome blond leaving no doubt that what he said was the absolute truth. Clover’s last thought was that he vaguely remembered the name from talking to Qrow and couldn’t wait to finally get to know that man.


End file.
